TALKING INFRA. President Rodrigo Duterte presides over the board meeting with the National Economic Development Authority (NEDA) at the State Dining Hall inside the Malacañang Palace on November 14, 2016. Photo by SIMEON CELI JR/Presidential Photo

MANILA, Philippines (UPDATED) – The National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) Board, chaired by President Rodrigo Duterte, approved 9 projects on Monday, November 14.

One of the projects approved during the NEDA board meeting is the South Line of the North-South Railway Project, a train that will run from Tutuban in Manila to Sorsogon in Bicol. This project was not approved at the first NEDA board meeting in September.

NEDA Director-General Ernesto Pernia, quoted in an Inquirerarticle, said the 653-kilometer railway will cost P214 billion, making it the biggest Public-Private Partnership (PPP) project.

Duterte, before he assumed the presidency, had said he aims to build 3 legacy railways in Luzon and Mindanao during his term.

The projects approved in the Monday meeting are worth around P270 billion, said Pernia in a message to Palace reporters.

In the first NEDA board meeting last September, 9 projects worth P171.14 billion were approved.

The approved projects, released by Presidential Spokesperson Ernesto Abella, are the following:

Scaling up of the Second Cordillera Highlands Agricultural Resources Management Project

Expansion of the Philippine Rural Development Project

Improvement/ Widening of General Luis-Kaybiga-Polo-Novaliches Road to Valenzuela City

The Chico River Pump Irrigation Project was discussed during the meeting but deferred with instructions for the National Irrigation Administration to reconfigure the project so it includes hydropower. The NIA was also told to gather more information on what type of crops may be profitably grown in the area around the Chico River.

During the NEDA board meeting, guidelines for processing projects that involve assistance from Chinese parties were also discussed.

Some of these guidelines include:

The source of financing for pre-investment studies are not tied to a particular country/technology/lender

Suppliers are qualified and of “good standing”

Contracts are favorable to government

The discussion on guidelines comes after Duterte’s state visit to China where Memoranda of Understanding between the government and Chinese companies were signed.

But some of these Chinese companies were found to have shady track records. One firm was involved in a string of accidents in Vietnam, while another was banned by multilateral lender World Bank.

The Palace later clarified that the government has made no commitments to these companies and had only agreed to allow the companies to do “feasibility studies.” – Rappler.com

CASTILLA, SORSOGON, May 16 — The government’s peace education program has paid-off, especially to school children in this conflict-affected area where teachers inculcate the value of peace to ensure a brighter future for their young pupils as law-abiding citizens.

The San Isidro Elementary School here has been selected as one of the pilot areas in the country, where peace education is taught –an initiative of the Bicol Consortium on Peace Education and Development (BCPED), in partnership with the Department of Education (DepEd) in Region V.

The project is fully supported by the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (OPAPP) and funded by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), through its Conflict Prevention and Peace Building Programme. Technical expertise is provided by the United Nations Act for Peace Program.

The program is to train teachers and administrators on how to mainstream peace perspectives into the basic education curriculum as well as into school policies, processes and relationships to make them conflict-sensitive and peace promoting.

Teachers are trained how to reach out to the families of the students and other members of the community for a holistic approach to build a culture of peace.

Emma J. Sario, a grade one teacher, upon returning from a training seminar, set up a corner in her classroom where she posted several ways on how to transform the classroom into a place of peace.

A co-teacher Sandra Aninipot encouraged her 55 students to come up with their own guidelines, many of which focused on respecting, helping and showing compassion towards their fellow students.

Aninipot has also adapted peaceful approaches in dealing with trying circumstances at home.

Barely five months after the implementation of the project, the teachers noticed remarkable changes in the behavior of their pupils, who now refrain from saying bad and hurting words to fellow students.

They also keep their composure and avoided retaliating when provoked by their classmates.

The phrase “Peace be with you” has become the popular saying heard around the campus.

School principal Teddy Jañola cited the importance of training the pupils on the importance of a lasting peace.

Aside from mainstreaming peace perspectives into the school program, Jañola and his teachers have spread the peace virus outside the school premises.

Jañola said a progress report has been submitted to the municipal and provincial officials about the project.

The school is actively working with the parents’ association to be able to reach out to the community more effectively.

Through peace education, the young students will be trained as peace advocates, he said.

With the success of the peace education program, teachers at the San Isidro Elementary School have felt a sense of personal triumph in helping the transformation of their students into peace- loving individuals.

Relationships among fellow teachers and students also have vastly improved.

For teacher Armie G. Buban, the whole experience reminded her of her commitment to become a peace advocate.

She said that being trained under this project has steadily helped her to keep her composure, especially in dealing with hard-headed students.

The school has already received commendations for the early success of the project resulting in the additional support being granted by the Department of Education and the expansion of the project to more schools in the Bicol region. (PNA) RMA/RBC/rsm

GMA truly touching peoples lives! Kapusong Totoo donated school supplies to poor student here. As such, We wanted to let you know how much we appreciate all the efforts GMA put into the realization of this project. Once again, thank you very much for your generous support and Merry X-MAS & Happy New year to all the staff of Kapusong Totoo..MABUHAY PO KAYONG LAHAT!! Dios mabalos!!

The BSP said a suspect would approach an ATM holder who has completed a transaction and inform him that a P500 bill is still stuck in the ATM machine.

The suspect, according to the BSP, would encourage the cardholder to make a balance inquiry and then look at the PIN keyed in by the victim.

At this point, the suspect drops a bill and asks the cardholder to pick it up, saying the money came out of the machine as part of the victim’s withdrawal.

This would give the suspect a chance to remove the victim’s ATM card from the machine and replace it with another card.

The BSP also warned that PINs could also be stolen through “shoulder surfing,” wherein the suspect stands close enough to the machine to see the PIN being entered by their prospective victims.

The BSP said ATM cardholders should always be vigilant and shield the keypad of the ATM machine when making a transaction.

“If you feel that somebody is standing too close, don’t be afraid to tell the next person who is in line to step back. If you feel uncomfortable, allow the other person to go first and complete your transaction one she or he has left,” the BSP said.

It also urged ATM cardholders to inspect machines before any transaction and look for fraudulent card reader devices. “If some parts around the slot for inserting the card do not seem right, consider walking away and transacting in another ATM machine,” the advisory stated.

The BSP urged cardholders to regularly change their PIN and not to share their PIN with another person, not even family members or friends.

Like this:

Former Pres. Cory Aquino your courage & hope inspired filipinos and you had made a heartbreaking sacrifices with Benigno” Ninoy” Aquino . With the victory that you win led us away from the dictatorship and regain our democracy in this land. We are so blessed by your life. Your mission does’nt end here though you are going back to Our loving God’s hands. We believed that your family and the rest of the supporters will continue what you have started. Thank you Pres Cory, may your SPIRIT guide this country to a better . Rest & Peace. God bless all!

Thus exclaimed Dr. Noli Arevalo, team leader of the Department of Health-Provincial Health Team (DOH-PHT), following the declaration of Sorsogon as Malaria and Filaria Free province.

Dr. Jaime Y. Lagahid, National Center for Disease Prevention and Control (NCDPC) director, officially declared the province Malaria and Filaria Free in a ceremony held at the Sorsogon Provincial Gymnasium on Thursday (July 23).

Arevalo said that their gregarious efforts to combat these diseases that threatened the lives and dampened productivity of several individuals in the province since 1950’s, have finally been rewarded.

“We thank the DOH for recognizing our sustained efforts and partnerships to curb these diseases, and are likewise grateful to the provincial government for making health among its priority agenda, and our NGO partners for their commitment and support in eliminating these diseases even before our target year in 2010,” he stated.

He also cited the local health workers, who in the past years have carried out house-to-house campaigns and mass drug administration (MDA) for residents aged 2-up in order to control the spread of these diseases.

Out of the 40 provinces in the country, only Southern Leyte and Sorsogon has been declared free of Malaria and Filaria diseases.

Arevalo averred Sorsogon province has attained a certain level based on the parameter of DOH wherein these diseases are considered no longer a public threat.

He related recent assessment revealed that only less than 1 percent of the entire population is affected by Filariasis, adding that the province has also maintained a zero case of indigenous malaria transmission over the past five years.

“However, such scenario does not mean we have to sit back, instead, perhaps work harder to prevent the recurrence of the diseases among locals,” he stressed.

“We are looking forward that Sorsogon can achieve the international standard for a Malaria and Filaria free province set by the World Health Organization (WHO),” he positively said.

Meanwhine, Arevalo advised the residents of Gubat, Pto. Diaz, Barcelona, Casiguran, Irosin, Juban, Donsol and Sta. Magdalena towns to take extra precautions and maintain a good environmental sanitation the possibility of recurrence is still there.

Malaria and Filariasis are both mosquito-borne parasitic diseases and endemic in the said areas, mostly with abaca and banana plantations.

Malaria can cause fever, shivering, joint pain, vomiting, anemia, and convulsions to persons inflicted with the disease, while Filaria is debilitating and disfiguring which primarily affects children, women and men living in endemic remote areas.

“The PHT will continue our massive information drive, monitoring and surveillance, partnership with the DOH and conduct border operations in order to sustain the elimination of these infective diseases,” he said.

DOH conferred to Sorsogon province a certificate of recognition and P1 million for successfully eradicating Malaria and Filaria diseases.

Arevalo noted the cash reward will be utilized anew on advocacy campaigns and other measures to prevent the re-emergence of the said diseases.

Sorsogon City (29 July) — Some 3,056 students across Sorsogon province have been enlisted to various colleges, universities, and technical-vocational schools for SY 2009-2010 by the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) under the Pangulong Gloria Scholarship Program (PGSP).

Rodolfo Benemerito, TESDA Sorsogon provincial director, stated the scholarship program is on the right track having assisted more than 3,000 local scholars with a total funding of P25,088,420.

Benemerito said the amount covers 100 percent tuition fees of the scholars, including training allowances at P60.00/day while on training, and the assessment fee of P500 per graduate.

He added the PGSP covers the following beneficiaries by Strategic Packages (SP) as follows:

SP IIa with 734 scholars and a total financial requirement of P6,630,160. This refers to qualifications implemented from January to April 2009. Still on-going is the Health Care Services NC II at the Lewis College, Sorsogon City, with 23 scholars.

SP IIb with 1,918 scholars and budgetary requirement of P16,848,440. This refers to qualifications which started February and for implementation until December 2009, with still on-going training courses in private tekbok schools and in TESDA schools.

SP IIb (Special Commitment Package) with 110 scholars, of which 10 are scholars of Shielded Metal Arc Welding NC II c/o TESDA Central Office thru OCSA amounting to P125,400. This also includes four (4) on-going programs involving 100 scholars in selected hotel and restaurant or tourism-related courses amounting to P697,000 for Sorsogon City as incentive for hosting the “2009 Hairecord” (Haircutting Competition) in April, 2009.

SP III which includes qualifications implemented autonomously by two TESDA schools, the Bulan Vocational Technological School with 394 scholars and Sorsogon National Agricultural School with 341 scholars.

SP V (NTTAQP) with 88 scholars including the National TVET Trainers and Assessors Qualification Program with financial requirement of P440,000 and the 40-hr Trainers Methodology (TM1) and 40-hr Assessors Methodology (AM1) courses designed to qualify TVET Trainers and Assessors as TQ1AQ1 Level.

“Corollary with the Economic Resiliency Program (ERP) of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, TESDA remains steadfast to its mandate of ensuring a sustainable supply of skilled workers and technicians to all local industries within internationally and globally accepted standards,” the provincial director stressed. (PIA Sorsogon)

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